Newbie problems...

Hello all

I am new to the board and to XJ ownership. I have wanted an XJ since I was a kid. I am 27 now and I finally got one. It is an 01 Sport with only 38,000 miles on it. I looked long and hard to find it. After giving it the once over, I decided to buy it.

Everything was going well until the second day I owned it. I noticed a little pool of oil underneath the real main seal area. Not good... I checked the common areas such as oil filter area and drain plug/oil pan blots. All checked out okay. After further inspection, I believe the oil is coming out of the back of the valve cover gasket. I reached back there and felt fresh oil. All bolts were tight though.

I guess my question would be is it normal to get a leaky gasket at only 38k?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

CONGRATULATIONS!!! Youve made it further than most. It is most likely the rear main seal and is a number 1 leaker on a ny year/mileage 4.0

I am not about to tackle such a project. I guess I need to have it check out professionally *shudders* What will replacing something like that cost? I am sure it is very labor intensive.

Try replacing the valve cover gasket first. It's an easy, cheap job.

2001 only 38k means lots of sitting around or short trips. That would cause a gasket problem.

rumblebelly said:

Try replacing the valve cover gasket first. It's an easy, cheap job.

Click to expand...

I agree, should have said that a bit ago, its like 8$ at autozone.

Is the valve cover gasket easy to change? I have changed motorcycle gaskets, but never a Jeep.

its not bad the back bolts can be a pain i just got doing mine on my 90 and the only issue i had were some hard lines that ran along the back o the cover and wouldn't let me lift it up over the rockers but if your newer model doesn't have those back there its pretty smooth sailing, if you have changed any gaskets before you should feel confident to tackle this one

Only one difference, one you can do sitting and the other you do standing

Thanks for the help guys. I just found out that the Jeep sat for a month before I got it. Maybe the gasket just dried up. Hopefully not all of them will follow suit...